The present invention generally relates to cooking apparatus and more particularly to apparatus for barbequeing meat.
A well known technique for cooking meat such as pork, chicken, beef or the like, is a process known as barbequeing. In barbequeing, meat is suitably supported within an enclosure and is subjected to heat and smoke, so that as the meat cooks a smoke flavor is imparted to the meat. Conventionally, the smoke is produced by the burning of fuel such as charcoal and/or wood such as hickory logs which impart a flavor to the meat that is particularly palatable and commercially desirable. Present day barbeque pits are characterized by certain limitations such as the tendency of fat or grease dripping from the meat during the cooking process to fall onto the burning charcoal and/or logs imparting an undesirable burnt taste to the meat and frequently producing flames which char the meat as well as creating potential fire hazards. It is also well known that the barbequeing process can be more effectively carried out if the meat is subjected to moisture, thereby preventing the drying out or overcooking of the meat. Various techniques have been proposed for adding moisture to the meat during the barbequeing process as well as for eliminating the undesirable effects of grease dripping on the burning fuel. However, such present day techniques are characterized by many limitations including the requirement of complex, expensive structures with low production rates which do not attain the desired quality for the end product.
Of even greater consideration has been the need for reducing the cost of the barbequeing operation so as to hold the price of the end product at a reasonable level without sacrificing quality. Since it is necessary that the meat be positioned in the barbeque pit in such a way as to provide free circulation of the smoke and cooking heat along the entire surfaces of the meat for the proper barbequeing effect, this has created a limitation on the quantity of meat which can be cooked during a single operation. Enlarging the cooking apparatus to accommodate larger quantities of meat in many cases would be prohibitively expensive so that with present day apparatus the amount of meat which can be cooked with a single quantity of fuel is limited thereby not only limiting production, but making barbequeing meat a relatively inefficient and expensive operation. Furthermore, constant effort has been made to increase the quality and taste of barbequeing meat for consumer appeal.